Supercomputer Breaks the $100/GFLOPS Barrier

Hank Dietz writes "At the University of Kentucky, KASY0, a Linux cluster of 128+4 AMD Athlon XP 2600+ nodes, achieved 471 GFLOPS on 32-bit HPL. At a cost of less than $39,500, that makes it the first supercomputer to break $100/GFLOPS. It also is the new record holder for POV-Ray 3.5 render speed. The reason this 'Beowulf' is so cost-effective is a new network architecture that achieves high performance using standard hardware: the asymmetric Sparse Flat Neighborhood Network (SFNN)." Because this was a university project, KASY0 was assembled entirely by unversity students, which while being a source of cheap labor, is also a good way to get a lot of students of involved in a great project.

Comments

Re:Why do you always call it slave labor? Its not.

[AceM2]

Where I live you can also sit on your ass on government welfare and do nothing.

I'm glad you're proud of the fact that there are hundreds of thousands (conservative estimate) cheating the system and being allowed to be leeches when they could be working. Actually, since you're so glad about supporting deadbeats, I'll be more than happy to let you pay my taxes. I'll make a deal with you.. Just give me your checking account number and I'll let you pay for my groceries too.



I'm not just being an asshole either, I've honestly had to work with people collecting government funds, and I'll tell you.. For every hard luck case, single mother gets laid off and is really looking for a job, there are at least 3 deadbeats and 2 crackheads who have found ways of cheating the system to collect good money. The way our system is now, why NOT cheat it? I'm not totally against government support, I don't want to see that single mother get kicked out of her apartment, but I'm certainly not proud of the deadbeats in this country. Welfare and foodstamps aren't preventing muggers and beggers one bit, and I'd wager that most 'muggers' (>50%) are already on government support.

People who don't want to work/won't work are, after all, a minority and will never bring a society financially to its knees.

The minority you speak of is huge. They're sucking billions out of our economy, and the able bodied free loaders should be stopped. The working man and woman, no matter what they're doing as long as it's legal, should be proud of themselves. Just think of the programs which could be funded by spending the welfare/foodstamps/etc money on them instead of giving it away to people who do nothing to deserve it. Think of the extra tax money that would even be generated by the thousands of people that could be employed instead of freeloading.

And before the libertarians jump in and start spouting crap about how they should not be made to pay for these freeloaders, let me remind you that you are free to leave the society.

That's such a stupid comment.. It's like saying after I build and maintain a successful business I shouldn't be allowed in the building because people want to smoke inside and I don't want them to.

You can take your business and live outside it, all tax free, but you'll come crying back when you realize that you'd have to fund your own law enforcement, health care and rescue services.

1) I can protect myself if allowed. I don't want to have to use one, but I'd use a gun, baseball bat, kitchen knife, or pencil if I had to.
2) Uhm.. I already have to pay full price to go to the doctor, what's going to change? I'll still just walk into one and pay the price.
3) Okay you got me, if I fall into a well I'll just hope some good person walks by to save me.. It's a risk I'm willing to take


Don't buy into the garbage of if you want protection you have to have welfare for deadbeats, it just doesn't make sense. I'm tempted to ask if you even have a job and what it is..